Columbus Rides Bikes!

Bixi bike share, Montreal   ( arcsi/flickr ) Earlier this week, Montreal's Bixi bike share program filed for bankruptcy. Now, a reporter closely following that company's sorry financial history says that could have implications for the Bixi-designed software used by many bike share systems in the U.S. In an interview with NPR's Renee Montaigne, Andy Riga—the transportation reporter for the  Montreal Gazette —says Bixi's financial troubles stem from loss of control of its software, which led to delays in cities including New York, Chicago, and San Francisco. "If in fact Bixi fails, what does it means to other cities?" Montaigne asked. "Can they survive if Bixi doesn't?" "That's hard to say," Riga responded, saying that there was talk New York and other systems might start over with software. [Keep reading at  WNYC]

A trip back in time, to the future? Well, sort of. [ See more on the 3Rensho Photo Blog  ]

I like the cut of his jib! [ Read all about it on grantmaclaren.com  ]

The Bucket Pannier Kits comes with all the parts to assemble two Kitty Litter Panniers or your Dream Panniers. Just about any box shaped container can be made into a pannier. Full color instructions and as needed parts to mount a handle and bungee top lid retainer. All the parts in the kit are stainless steel or brass for a long life. Soon to be released the deluxe system with Jandd’s Patented Web-V strap and the Uber Bucket Kit featuring the German Module-Loc. Bucket Kit includes: 4    Stainless Steel J-Hooks with protective cover 2    Bungee assembly with bottom hook and rivets 2    Bottom Retainer Strap with grommets. 8    1/2 Black Stainless Screws 4    5/8 Silver Stainless Steel Screws 12  Stainless Steel Nyloc Nuts 12  Stainless Over-sized Washers 2    3/4 Web Handles with preset melted holes (Not needed on Buckets with handles) 1    1 Yard of 1/8" Bungee (For Lid Retention if needed...

Hey, did you know it's winter? Hey, did you also know that you can make your BMX bike into a snowbike? [ See more on driftersnowbikes.com  ]

The Touring Canti is a powerful cantilever brake with a similar design to the  Neo-Retro , but with the arms angled upward. This gives the brake a much narrower profile without significantly reducing stopping power. The narrower profile of the Touring Canti can be desirable if you're riding with large panniers or if your current brakes don't give you enough heel or calf clearance. The arms of the Touring Canti are machined from lightweight 6061 aluminum. Their T-shaped cross section prevents the brake from flexing too much under load. The brake pads mount to slots in the arms that allow for vertical positioning. The toe-in and angle can be fine tuned thanks to the spherical washers on the brake pads' threaded posts. Like all of our brakes, the Touring Canti has a sealed pivot mechanism. Rubber seals and a stainless steel bushing keep the brake arms turning smoothly no matter what you're riding through. The spring tension can be adjusted in both pivots to center...

Description Mountain bikes are awesome. I even think that they're awesome when used as commuters or touring bikes. One problem: manufacturer's include suspension-corrected forks so the frames are compatible with standard travel suspension forks. This is all well and good until a person wants to mount fenders. The front fender sits way up off the tire, rendering it nearly useles. The Fender Flute won't drive the rats out of Hamelin, but it will provide a lower mounting position for the front fender, allowing for better, more effective performance.  Tech Details Threaded M6 holes at 10mm intervals for adjustability M6 bolts and lock-washers included Made in the USA [Problem Solvers]

Michael Gil /Flickr Scumbags who run from the scene of serious accidents face jail time, the loss of their licenses and, if they've been drinking or getting high, probable DUI cases. For now "serious" means death or bodily injury. But minor scrapes mean a hit-&-run driver faces minor consequences. Until now. L.A. area state Assemblyman Mike Gatto this week proposed a new law that would mean automatic license revocation for runners in accidents involving victims who are able to walk away with minor injuries: His bill, AB 1532, was announced this week. Gatto's office says: Right now, there are few consequences for hit-and-run offenders whose victims are lucky enough to walk away with only minor injuries. Current law creates serious consequences, including license revocation, for individuals who commit a hit-and-run that results in death or serious bodily injury.  Losing your license would apply to more minor collisions, then, too. Gatto, by the way, is the g...

It’s the last thing you would expect to hear at the Detroit Auto Show from the CEO of Ford Motor Company. But last week, Ford’s Alan Mulally showed some ambivalence about the role of cars in major cities. At the Detroit Auto Show, Ford CEO Alan Mulally said he doesn’t think more cars can solve mobility problems in big cities. Image: Top News “I think the most important thing is to look at the way the world is and where the world is going and to develop a plan,” Mulally said, according to  the Financial Times . “We’re going to see more and more larger cities. Personal mobility is going to be of really ever-increasing importance to livable lifestyles in big cities.” Mulally said Ford has been trying to adapt to changing consumer preferences since the Great Recession. Americans have been trading giant SUVs for smaller cars. Young people have been purchasing fewer cars altogether, a phenomenon Mulally said might be reversed by cheaper cars. But he also said he wasn’t sur...

Major media have a habit of blowing bike-share problems out of proportion. Witness  the 2009 BBC story  that cast theft and vandalism as an existential threat to Velib in Paris. Five years later, Velib is still going strong. The most recent entry in the genre is Christopher Matthews’  misguided story  on the Bixi bankruptcy in TIME. Headline: “Why America’s Grand Bike-Sharing Experiment Is Failing.” There’s a reason that Divvy was fed up with Bixi’s software, but TIME didn’t explain why. Photo: John Greenfield The main mistake Matthews makes is to conflate Bixi’s troubles with the fate of American bike-share overall: The question now is whether this is the beginning of the end for the bike-sharing experiments that have spread quickly across the U.S. So far, officials from various bike-sharing programs are saying no. This is a poor way to frame the issue, for a few reasons. While Bixi is the dominant supplier in the American bike-share market, it is f...

A bicycle cooperative on Columbus' Near East Side not only promotes alternatives to automotive transportation, but also provides affordable access to bikes and the know-how to keep the wheels turning. For a little more than a year, Third Hand Bicycle Cooperative, a volunteer-run nonprofit, has maintained a not-so-ordinary bike shop at 979 E. Fifth Ave., in the Milo Grogan neighborhood of Columbus. There, customers can find a wealth of used bikes in various states of repair and function. The median sales price is $30, and those who volunteer can earn discounts on bikes and bike parts. They also can learn how to get and keep their rides street-worthy from an impassioned group of volunteer "coordinators," who teach and assist in bike maintenance during "open shop sessions" held each Wednesday from 6 to 9 p.m. and Saturdays from 1 to 4 p.m. The co-op, which evolved from gatherings of bike enthusiasts in home garages almost 15 years ago, seeks to promote cyc...

Elevated cycle track network - Netherlands 1950s.  There's been a bit of chatter of late about a (not very) new idea for bicycle "infrastructure" in London. None other than architect Norman Robert Foster, Lord Foster of Thames Bank, OM Kt, has dusted off a student's idea and launched it upon an unsuspecting world. [Keep reading at Copenhagenize]

OTTAWA — The bankruptcy protection filing of the Canadian company that has supplied the bicycles and the technology behind most of the bike-sharing programs in major American cities is revealing a complicated and messy financial foundation. No one anticipates that systems like Chicago’s Divvy or New York’s Citi Bike will collapse because of Monday’s filing by the Société de Vélo en Libre-Service, a company usually called Bixi. But its roots inside Montreal’s municipal parking authority led to the creation of a company whose product, while quickly proving popular with riders, was doomed never to make money. Court documents and interviews with suppliers, customers and politicians show that Bixi’s acumen with technology and design has been undermined by an often ad hoc approach to business and a lack of a clear mandate. One of the Bixi mysteries is its relationship with its agent in the United States. Unlike the three Canadian cities with Bixi systems, Ottawa, Toronto and Montreal,...

Porcelain Rocket is a constant desire to be making and giving form to function.  Exploration and adventure.  Dynasties and Empires lusted and searched the planet for the secrets of porcelain, and the rocket is as universal a symbol for exploration and playful, imaginative adventure as one can conjure. My name is Scott Felter.  I was born in New Orleans, and have lived all across North America, riding and making.  I now call Calgary, Alberta my home. If something that you find here takes your fancy,  drop me a line ! http://www.porcelainrocket.com/

OTTAWA — The Canadian company that designs and builds the bicycles and supporting technology for bike-sharing systems around the world, including those in New York and London, sought bankruptcy protection on Monday. Denis Coderre, the mayor of Montreal, told reporters that a failed, if ambitious, international expansion plan and a financial dispute with some United States cities, including New York, had forced the move by Société de Vélo en Libre-Service, a nonprofit company, better known as Bixi. The move will allow the company, which was spun off from the city of Montreal, to continue to operate in the short term. But untangling the financial and legal mess surrounding its operations will most likely be a more protracted business. Bixi’s financial statements from 2012 have still not been released. In September, the city of Montreal’s auditor general expressed doubt about its financial viability. On Jan. 15, Montreal demanded that Bixi make a long overdue 31.6 million Canadian ...

Convoy of One from The Republic of Doom on Vimeo .

In late 2013 this mass die-in took place outside the TFL headquarters to protest the spate of deaths and injuries to London cyclists. Following the death of 44 cyclists on London's 'killing roads' since 2011, the city has a new cyclists' movement with a radical edge and a focus on direct action. Donnachadh McCarthy is a co-founder of Stop Killing Cyclists. This deathly pyramid of transport violence demands the creation of an urgent direct-action but peaceful human-rights movement. [Read more on Ecologist ]

I want to be up front and say that I really like racing cyclocross. There is something super fun about a crit on grass and turning yourself inside out for 45 minutes. Skinny tires on dirt, fast speeds, mud, snow, puke…it’s pure awesome.  But I did my last cross race 7 years ago, and it left a pretty bad taste in my mouth. It was perfect cross weather in upstate New York. It had rained for most of the day prior, and now it was starting to snow. I toe the line for the also-ran category in typical DC form. Still a little drunk from the night before, a singlespeed, and wearing a wifebeater. I was feeling frisky so I worked my way to the front to see if I could have some fun with the hole-shot. Just then, everybody’s favorite USA Cycling official tells me I’m not racing due to a rules violation. Confused I inquire: ”Excuse me, sir. There is nothing in the rules that says I have to be sober. Besides this is cyc...

  Above image by Josh Ritchie Connecting the Keys By Sher Jasperse Here's an excellent feature from the Winter 2014 edition of  Rails to Trails magazine . One of many perks provided by RTC  membership , our quarterly magazine includes lots of great stories like this.   Photo by Josh Ritchie More Information The Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail is a work in progress. Before you go, get the latest information about the trail route and points of interest by visiting the  Florida State Parks website  or the  trail info page on Trail link . Several Key West communities have visitor information centers. A good starting point is the "official" Florida Keys Visitor Center in Key Largo (MM106.2), where helpful advice, maps and brochures—including the latest FKOHT map—are available. Name:   Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail Length:  106.5 miles Trail end points:  Key Largo (MM 106 on US 1) to Key West (MM 0 on US 1) Trail sur...

Reuters Astrid Idlewild points us to an  intriguing debate  in Toronto that doesn't involve Rob Ford. After about a year and a half of deliberation, the city's Transportation Services division has emerged with a definition of a "bicycle." The civic authority's original intent was to clarify which travelers belong in the bike lane, and which don't. Evidently that's not such an easy task. Obviously human-powered bicycles belong in the lanes, but Transportation Services has recommended that small electric-powered vehicles have a place there, too [ PDF ]. These include so-called "pedelecs" — otherwise known as electric bicycles — as well as e-scooters. [Keep reading at The Atlantic Cities]